“There are some songs on here that are musically edgier than anything we’ve done before,” Atkins said of the new album. “Then we go down to a romantic love song. I’d never done that before, and there’s a couple of songs — most love songs that you get, that you write, ehh… It’s not about what it’s really like once you’ve been in a relationship or been married a while. You wanna try to find things that are just honest.”

Asked about the stories behind his new songs, Atkins replied, “For me, gosh, all these songs hit me in a personal way. ‘Growing Up Like That’ just started out as I had a writing appointment with Ben Hayslip and Ted Hewitt, and on the way to go write with them I was telling them about my kid’s basketball goal. It’s one of those kinds you can put anti-freeze down in, or people put water or sand to hold it still. Well, his goal had blown over either on my truck or on the driveway ten times. I’m like, ‘Man, that thing. We need to go back to the basketball goal I had growing up.’”

Reliving those memories drove home the sacrifices of parenthood for Atkins, who said having a child of his own has made him appreciate his parents more. “You realize the times where I know they were flat worn out,” he explained. “My dad coming home from work just really tired, wore out, but he still made time to put the ball glove on and come out and pass. To put the effort in, to just be present when we were there talking about stuff, or watching the game together, or going fishing. Taking that time to really be in the moment. For me it’s beyond appreciation. Being adopted, it’s amazing the sacrifices they made on my behalf.”

For his latest single with the same title as the album, Atkins spent some time on top of a bridge, which is appropriate considering the song took his career to new heights by being his sixth number one hit. Check it out below.

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